A Letter to Walmart

It has been a while since I published a letter from one of my readers. I get several comments via email concerning typical customer service problems we experience daily, but this letter goes into much detail describing a particular frustration that may be familiar to many consumers. The problem is, the customer placed an order online and paid extra for overnight shipping. The items ordered arrived three days later. The company is Wal-Mart - the largest retailer in the U.S. However, as you will soon find out, large does not necessarily mean good, when it comes to customer service anyway. Please read the following excerpts from the perplexed Wal-Mart (former) customer and let me hear your comments:

After repeated (frustrated attempts) to find a phone # or address, I got through to a Customer Service line and explained that I wanted to have an address to where I could send a letter of dissatisfaction and as to why my husband and I canceled our account today. The customer service representative never asked why but gave me a PO Box address in Florida. 'Is there a particular department or name?' "No." I am thinking to myself, what happens when a complaint letter arrives at that PO box? How in the world will it find its way to the right department? Then the representative asks if there is anything else Wal-Mart could do. Yes, I want to explain my story and make a complaint. That is why I needed the address. "OK, thanks for calling today and being a valued Wal-Mart Customer."
AARGGGH!

Then I went online to corporate offices, got that address and phone number, and of course, being a holiday, they were not open. But here was some information I thought you would find interesting. On the Wal-Mart corporate Website are these words:

"Our Three Basic Beliefs as per Sam Walton:
1. Respect for the Individual
2. Service to Our Customers
3. Striving for Excellence"

(I beg to differ that they operate their business by these principles).

I must go on record to say that the CS rep, Tawana, from Wal-Mart.com who called today in response to my email dispute, was very gracious and polite. She listened, she understood, agreed with some of my frustration and even found an error on the site regarding the shipping info on the Eastsport Backpack I ordered that she was going to report. Yet, even with the misunderstanding on the order, the fact that it was not stated clearly that the backpack would not be charged the $.97 as stated for that day's special but would also incur the additional 1-day shipping fee, and that there was an error in how the shipping info was listed; AND the fact that a 'valued customer' was about to cancel the account completely, she would not refund the $14.00 shipping fee in question.

When my husband called to cancel the account, the rep never asked why we were dissatisfied with their customer service. I will say that they accurately and speedily canceled the account because when I went back online to try to send a letter from there, the account was already closed.

I will be sending a letter to the PO Box and I may still dispute paying the additional shipping fee that I am contesting. I will await the bill and see what options are listed there.

Oh and on the Wal-Mart corporate site, they also refer to "Servant Leadership". Yeah, right...

Thanks

It has been my experience that some large companies tend to hide behind the word "POLICY" rather than empowering their employees to do the right thing. Empowered employees use their good judgment in order to fix an injustice to the customer. In this case, the customer believed that by spending more, they could guarantee the arrival of their order in one day. Wal-Mart's shipping policy does not give any such guarantee. The Wal-Mart customer service reps are given certain guidelines by which to abide when dealing with customers. The reps therefore may have the impression of always being in the right if they follow these guidelines. If that is the case, all I can add is that Wal-Mart should add to their "Three Basic Beliefs" a fourth that says, "Whether the customer is right or wrong, they are always the customer!"

DJC

Thank you Herb!

Every business magazine and business student knows something about Southwest Airlines (SWA). My favorite business leader, Herb Kelleher, who was so significant in making SWA the admired company it is today has retired as Chairman of the Board. I have held off talking about this wonderful company because I was certain that I would only be redundant. I choose to add my two-cents today because airline customers are recently being charged extra by other airlines for things like, baggage of all things! Why are airlines like American resorting to these tactics? Just look at the price signs on the local gasoline stations. The same rising costs have created a crisis at airliner fuel stations. Most airlines have not prepared for these huge rises in jet fuel and are now making their customers pay the price for their inept management. Why hasn't SWA followed suit?

Under Mr. Kelleher's direction, SWA began storing fuel as far back as their beginning years to meet just such a fuel crunch as being experienced today. What began as a small Texas airline, Southwest has grown to become one of the largest airlines in the U.S. Today, Southwest Airlines flies over 104 million passengers a year to 64 cities all across the country, and they do it more than 3,400 times a day. What makes SWA unique?

More than 36 years ago, Rollin King and Herb Kelleher got together and decided to start a different kind of airline. They began with one simple notion: If you get your passengers to their destinations when they want to get there, on time, at the lowest possible fares, and make darn sure they have a good time doing it, people will fly your airline. And you know what? They were right.

For those of you who are not all that familiar with the SWA roots, here is a short synopsis:

Founded in 1971, Southwest Airlines began to establish a consistent pattern of deviating from convention. In 1978 the airline industry was deregulated and 120 plus airlines have gone bankrupt since. Why, in this difficult environment, has SWA continued to grow and thrive? Notably, SWA is the only airline to continuously show a profit every year since 1973. How has SWA managed to increase its traffic by as much as 139%? Here are some facts that might help to understand how SWA has achieved this incredible record:

* The company consistently leads the industry in low fares and dominates the short haul market with an average of 60% market share.
* The company serves over 2400 customers per employee annually - making SWA employees by far the most productive workforce in the airline industry.
* Employee turnover averages 6.4% - again one of the best records in the industry.
* SWA is consistently ranked in the top 100 of the best U.S. companies to work for.
* They have never been forced to lay off employees regardless of external market factors such as recession or high fuel prices.
*They have the best record for baggage handling in the industry.
* They have the best on-time performance record.
* Fewest customer complaints.
* Youngest fleet of airplanes, and the best safety record!

If the above does not convince you that SWA is doing something unique, consider they can turn around an airplane at the gate in 15 minutes. Thats a full 10 minutes faster than their nearest competitor. This allows them to operate with 35 fewer aircraft.

The SWA culture is as unique as its business strategy. The differences begin in the hiring process - they believe in "hiring for attitude and training for skills". You must have a sense of humor to work at SWA, and they insist on having "fun" at work. More importantly, all employees are told to be themselves and treat other employees as "best friends" (Great internal customer service!). Finally, employees are told to establish their own standard of professionalism. They are encouraged to think entrepreneurially and act quickly even if it means disregarding the company bureaucracy. Southwest empowers their employees and expects positive results by eliminating inflexible rules.

Although Herb Kelleher has retired, the high standards and positive attitude he instilled while Chairman and father-figure to all SWA employees carries on. Many airlines have tried to copy Southwest’s business model, and the culture of Southwest is admired and emulated by corporations and organizations in all walks of life. Always the innovator, Southwest pioneered Senior Fares, a same-day air freight delivery service, and Ticketless Travel. Southwest led the way with the first airline web page:southwest.com; DING! the first-ever direct link to customer’s computer desktops that delivers live updates on the hottest deals.

Let me leave you with this quote from the SWA Website:

As you can see, we've been busy these past 36+ years. And we promise that the future will be just as fun-filled and exciting as the last. We've accomplished quite a bit, and along the way we've earned a title no other airline in the industry can claim: the leading low-fare, high-frequency, point-to-point carrier in America. We are proud of our accomplishments, and it just goes to show that time really does fly when you're having fun!

Thanks Herb. I will remain a loyal Southwest Airlines customer because of the great customer service example you and your company pioneered.

DJC

Customer Service Moments of Truth

Products alone can no longer sustain a company as a market leader, nor can products alone be depended upon to build a small business. Companies across all industries must treat customer service as their primary product - one that can be constantly improved. Providing quality service does not simply provide a competitive edge; it is the Critical Element. Some experts like to call them Moments of Truth . A high quality service encounter raises expectations for all future encounters.

Jan Carlzon, former President of Sacandinavian Airline System (SAS) called "Moments of Truth" - opportunities. He says, "A Moment of Truth is an episode in which the customer comes into contact with any aspect of the company, however remote, and thereby has an opportunity to form an impression." Each customer contact is a unique, unrepeatable opportunity for a company to differentiate itself from the competition. Every decision should be made with the customer in mind and viewed as another opportunity to make a favorable impression. Unfortunately, failure to satisfy a customer on any Moment of Truth will quickly destroy the customer's memory of good service. On the other hand, getting it right can erase all the wrongs that the customer previously experienced.

The two crucial components of the critical element include: results and process. To focus and manage our customer's Moment of Truth, we can use a simple five-step process:

1. Identify and prioritize each customer episode or contact. This means thinking about every time you come in contact with an internal (I will talk more on this subject in my next posting) or external customer either in person, by phone or email, or through your company process or system. You should then determine which of these customer contacts would have the most impact on customer satisfaction.

2. Develop alternative customer responses. Think of some alternative ways you could improve your response in each of these customer contact opportunities.

3. Decide which responses will delight your customer. Choose the response that will most likely pleasantly surprise your customer and thereby not just meet, but exceeds their expectations. "Delight" Moments of Truth provide unexpected, thoughtful, delightful experiences for the customer. Knowing your customers likes and dislikes makes this easier.

4. Create a service standard to ensure basic customer satisfaction. When a response delights your customer, think about writing it down and using it for all of your customers. That's when it becomes a standard. Be careful, after a customer has become accustomed to this "delightful" Moment of Truth, they may begin to expect the experience and this becomes a "basic" Moment of Truth. Exceeding expectations requires a continual desire to improve. You will need to remain creative to continue to delight the customer.

5. Measure customer satisfaction on each Moment of Truth. Find a way to continually check to see if it's time to improve or change your standard response. Strive to provide breakthrough quality service on specific Moments of Truth by using the personal thoughts and creativity of everyone in your organization.

Reflect on what the competition does to set their customer service bar high. Ask your customers what they expect. Ask your teammates what works for them. If you work to merely satisfy your customers and fall short, you will have an angry or dissatisfied customer. Working to delight customers means going beyond meeting basic expectations.

Good luck.

DJC